


I ain't sick

by twdeadfanfic



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, prison era
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-02
Updated: 2019-09-12
Packaged: 2020-10-09 04:09:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,039
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20491370
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/twdeadfanfic/pseuds/twdeadfanfic
Summary: Daryl has gotten sick with fever, but he won’t admit it and slow down until he just can’t keep going, passing out and ending up bedridden, haunted by nightmares and trapped in deliriums about his past abuse while the reader tries to take care of him.(Or: Me indulging in how much I want to take care of Daryl, comfort him, and protect him from everything.) Hurt/Comfort, Angst, Fluff…just my kind of things. Prison era. Inspired by a request.





	1. Chapter 1

“This’s like the third time you sneeze in less than five minutes.”

Daryl ignored your remark, rolling his eyes as he kept skinning squirrels. You were helping him, not as skillful as him but definitely better than the first times you had tried back when he began to teach you. Another five minutes and Daryl cleared his throat and sneezed again. You arched an eyebrow at him and Daryl glared at you all grumpy.

“I told you already, I think you might be coming up with something,” you insisted. “You have been like this since we went to that nursery to find stuff for Judith two days ago. You might be getting sick.”

It hadn’t been a difficult run, the place had been empty of walkers, though it had been hard to walk through the place, seeing all the blood and abandoned stuff, no matter you needed it, trying not to wonder what had happened with the kids who had been there…

Daryl had seemed to notice your face and train on thoughts, and once he was sure there weren’t walkers in, he had sent you out to keep watch and make sure nor people neither walkers were approaching while he went through the place, collecting everything that you needed for Judith.

Now you were wondering if there might not have been some kind of bug or virus living in the place too, because Daryl had begun coughing and sneezing yesterday, and today you could see him getting worse. You thought he might be coming up with a cold or flu, or anything like that…but of course, he wasn’t going to admit it even if it was true.

“I don’t get sick,” Daryl grumbled, sounding pretty much like a sick, stubborn kid who doesn’t want to stop playing.

“Everyone gets sick sometimes. You should go talk to Hershel.”

“Told you I’m fine!” He snapped and you rolled your eyes, shaking your head, but deciding to let it go. For now.

“Stubborn…” You muttered.

You knew how stubborn Daryl could be, you probably knew it better than anyone, after been together as a couple for some months now. You both didn’t start to get really close until you lost the Greene’s farm. It first started with late-night talks, slowly getting to know more about each other. Then the nights grew colder and colder, and as you slept by each other, each night you slept closer until somehow it turned into sleeping curling up together. You both had the excuse of fighting against the cold, but at some point there was no point in denying your feelings, your silly smile when you looked at him, the butterflies in your belly, the way you felt with his arms around you, how protective of him you were, rivaling with how protective he was of you too… and so there you were now.

That evening, as you all dined together squirrel stew, you knew by the way in which Daryl was breathing that he was starting to get a stuffed nose. You didn’t say anything about it, not after how he had reacted earlier, but Carol did, which prompted Hershel into asking too and into offering advice. Daryl snapped at them and got up, rushing out of the room, and you sighed as you watched him go. He was behaving like such a stubborn child about this.

After you finished your dinner and helped to wash and sort everything, you went looking for Daryl. He wasn’t in your cell and you found him outside, rattling the fence that separated your yard from another and putting down the walkers that got close, attracted by the sound. By now you had cleared almost the while prison, but there were still some parts with walkers trapped in them.

“I’m going to bed, are you coming?”

Daryl didn’t even look at you as he answered, “You want me to go sleep with you? Ain’t you saying I’m sick? You want me to spread it to you?”

You rolled your eyes at his sarcastic tone, “Clean that blood off you when you go to bed.”

*

You were awake but lying on the bed when Daryl finally came, a couple of candles illuminating the room.

“What you doing up there?”

“What you said, not getting infected by sleeping next to you…” You knew you were being petty, but you couldn’t help it after how childish and rude Daryl was being, and so you were lying on the top bunk of the cell instead of on the one that you both shared.

Daryl didn’t say anything, just looked at you, shook his head, and got into the other bunk, though he didn’t blow the candles. “You really gonna sleep up there? He asked when a few minutes passed. You hummed a yes, trying to be as stubborn as him, but after a while of lying alone there, you got up, climbed down the bunk and went to lie next to Daryl. “You’re silly,” he murmured as he threw his arm over you.

“No. You’re silly.” You retorted, blowing the candles with a little more force than what was necessary. “You’re getting sick and we’re trying to help but you behave like a kid…or an asshole.”

“Ain’t sick…”

“Whatever.” You turned around so your back was to him, but you didn’t resist when Daryl’s arm tugged at you to hold you against his chest, and he nuzzled into your shoulder. “Your hair’s wet,” you noticed.

“You told me to wash the blood…”

“Yeah, not to take a full shower at night.” The weather wasn’t bad, but still, you worried that if Daryl was already getting sick, a not so warm shower at night and sleeping with his hair wet in a kind of cold cell might worsen it.

You didn’t say anything, though, not wanting him to get all grumpy again, you were too tired to fight, but you turned around so you could wrap your arms around him to hold him to you and try to keep him warm while you both slept. Daryl snuggled to you, wrapping his own arm around you and burying his face in the crook of your shoulder.

“You better don’t sneeze on me,” you teased in a whisper, making Daryl bite your shoulder softly before nestling into you again.

*

You woke up startled in the middle of the night when Daryl began to cough, making you shake since you both were still tangled together. “Hey, you okay?” You held him tighter when a new coughing fit made him shake.

“Fine,” he grumbled, coughing again.

“You’re not fine.” You reached out until you found the lantern, turning it on and taking the bottle of water that you had next to it, passing it to Daryl.

He sat up, taking a sip. “Thanks.” His voice was coarse and after another sip of water, he began coughing again.

“You’re not fine. You’re sick.”

“I ain’t.”

“Let Hershel look at you in the morning.”

“Told you I’m fine,” Daryl snapped, which made him cough again. He reached to leave the bottle on the bedside table and lied down again, his back to you as if finishing the conversation, and you let out a sigh at his stubbornness.

Daryl refused to go see Hershel the next day, no matter you tried to make him. Instead, he joined the group that was going to clear walkers from one of the cellblocks, with Rick, Carol, Maggie and Glenn, and also yourself. You didn’t let Daryl out of your sight since you noticed he wasn’t feeling good. You could see he had trouble breathing, and from time to time he shook with coughing fits. That didn’t stop him from putting down every walker that he encountered, but still you were close to him so you could help him just in case, putting down walker after walker yourself, until all of you managed to clear the whole cell block. One less to go, pretty soon the whole prison would be free of walkers.

Hours passed and Daryl still refused to acknowledge he was getting sick, even though you could see him getting worse. He didn’t sneeze anymore, but you could hear it was hard for him to breathe, and he was coughing more and more. You didn’t tell him anything, knowing how he’d react, but you were planning on telling Hershel to check him anyway, even if you had to hold Daryl down.

You were sat down in the hall, watching over Daryl at the same time that you studied a map for the next run, focusing on the roads and places that Glenn had marked as the most promising. Rick was pacing around the room as he rocked baby Judith while Daryl worked on his crossbow, cursing every time a coughing fit made him mess something or hurt a finger.

“You’re coughing even worse than this morning, you have to get checked by Hershel, we have an infirmary now after all,” Rick told him, rolling his at the icy glare that Daryl gave him before he grabbed his crossbow and got up, ignoring his words and leaving the hall, heading towards the cells.

You huffed a sigh, shaking your head, and Rick raised his eyebrows at you, smirking. “He can be such a stubborn child!” You complained, and Rick clapped your shoulder as you walked past him to go find Daryl. Rick was right, he was coughing more and you thought he was starting to look sick too.

You guessed he’d gone to your cell, and you found he’d even drawn the curtain closed and all. When you opened it, you found him sitting down against the headboard, fidgeting with a bolt. You went to sit at the end of the bed and he didn’t even look at you.

“Daryl. You’re sick and you’re getting worse.”

Daryl did look sick, there was no doubt, his face pale and clammy, dark circles under his eyes. You hadn’t seen him looking like that before, not even during winter when you all were almost starving and dehydrating. The closest thing was when he was hurt at Hershel’s farm, but he didn’t look ill like this. You reached out to place your hand on his forehead, checking if he had a temperature. You though he felt warmer than usual, but you weren’t sure. Daryl closed his eyes, leaning into your cooling touch before he caught himself and pulled away.

“I think you might have a fever, but Hershel will now better.”

“Told you I’m fine!” Daryl got up but you held his arm before he could walk away. “Leave me alone!”

“Hey. We’re just worried about you, don’t be like that…”

Daryl looked at you, chewing on his lower lip, almost as if he regretted he’d snapped again. “Ain’t no reason to worry, I’m fine,” he muttered before walking away.

That evening, though, you managed to convince him to let Hershel check him, even though he kept insisting he was fine and he complained the whole time. He wasn’t, Hershel confirmed he was starting to get a fever, and he didn’t like the way in which he was coughing. He told him to take some antibiotics but Daryl scoffed, ignoring the advice and telling you all once more to leave him alone before storming out of the infirmary and back to the cell.

Later, when you walked into your cell, Daryl was lying on the bed, half propped against the wall. He peeked at you briefly before looking down, gnawing on his thumbnail, as if guessing you were upset at his behavior and waiting for you to snap at him, but you didn’t. You knew it would take you nowhere. Instead, you sat down next him, taking his hand so he wouldn’t chew at his finger until the skin bled.

“Why you don’t want to take the antibiotics?” You asked softly, trying to finally have a reasonable talk without any of you snapping at each other. Daryl shrugged, looking down.

“Ain’t no reason to be wasting those.”

“It’s not wasting them. You’re sick, Daryl, you may get worse if you don’t take them.”

“I’m good enough. Ain’t nothing. We have to save those, it ain’t like they grow in trees,” he grumbled and you let out a frustrated sigh.

“You’re lucky I love you, ‘cause you can be pretty stubborn and frustrating some times.”

Daryl scoffed, but his lip curled into a tiny smile as he looked at you in that same way in which he did whenever you told him you loved him, as if he were always surprised to hear it but couldn’t help his smile at it, with his cheeks still always tainted pink. You kind of loved it. Knowing that you weren’t going to change his mind, you decided to let it go for now and shifted to lie down on the bed. If he wasn’t better in the morning, then you’d make him take the antibiotics even if you had to pour them into his mouth and plug his nose.

Daryl turned off the lantern and lied down too. He shifted until he was half lying over you and he snuggled to you, hiding his face on the crook of your shoulder. You wrapped your arms around him to hold him, feeling the warmth radiating from him, and you began to stroke his hair.

“You’re not feeling good,” you whispered, you could feel it, but Daryl refused to stay anything, stubborn.

Next morning, you woke up to Daryl crawling over you so he could get out of bed. He murmured an apology and you reached out to grab his arm and stop it.

“Wait, where are you going?” You blinked your tired eyes awake. “How’re you feeling?” He had been coughing during that night too, waking both of you.

“I’m good…” he rasped.

You didn’t let go of him and you sat up so you could hold your palm against his forehead, frowning at how warm it felt. “I think you’re getting worse…you should try to sleep for a little bit longer, you hadn’t got much rest this night…” and while he slept, you’d make sure to inform Hershel and make Daryl swallow whatever pills the vet gave you.

“No. We’re leaving for the run soon.” Daryl yanked his arm out of your wraps but once again you grabbed his wrist, tugging at him to make him fall down onto the bed again.

“We? You’re sick! You’re not going, get in bed. You need to rest.”

“Told you I’m fine!” Daryl snapped, yanking his arm free once again and rushing away from you before you could say anything else.

“I’m gonna tie you to the bed!”

“Sounds kinky…” Came Glenn’s voice from a nearby cell, making you groan as you flopped down onto the bed in frustration.

*

Much to your relief, Daryl didn’t get to go to the run. Rick took a look at him and told him to stay at the prison and rest. No matter how angry Daryl got and how loud he argued about it, Rick didn’t change his mind, and Daryl stormed out of the room. You weren’t going to the run either, and so when the others left, you went looking for Daryl. You found him once again at the fence of one of the cellblocks that you all hadn’t cleared yet, sinking his knife into the heads of the walkers that came attracted to the noise.

“Don’t wanna hear it,” he snapped when he felt you approaching and he didn’t even turn to look at you. “Leave me alone.”

You wanted to snap too, to drag his ass to bed and force him to take the pills, but you knew it wasn’t the best approach. Daryl wasn’t feeling good and he was frustrated, and so you tried to understand it even though you were getting frustrated too. And so instead of saying anything, you just walked closer and wrapped your arms around his middle, resting your cheek on his back. Daryl seemed confused, stiffing before relaxing again. He shifted a bit, but then he let you snuggle to him, placing the hand that wasn’t holding the knife on top of one of yours.

“Everybody gets sick,” you whispered. “There’s nothing wrong in it.”

“I’m good,” he grumbled and you let out a sigh.

You looked at the walkers on the other side of the fence. There weren’t many left and you decided to let Daryl put them down, maybe it’d help him vent his frustration a bit, and then you’d try to talk sense into him again.

“Why don’t you finish here and then come to help me sort some things inside?” Daryl just shrugged and you pressed a kiss to his shoulder, unwrapping your arms and letting him go. “Okay, then. Don’t take long or I’ll come and drag you with me by your ear,” you half teased and Daryl scoffed, rolling his eyes before putting down another walker through the fence.

You waited for him inside but he wasn’t coming. You’d warned him, and so you went out looking for him. He wasn’t where you had left him, the place clear of walkers. You considered he might have gone to clear another cellblock by himself, but the idea was even too crazy for Daryl. You made your way to the guard tower where Carl was…it might be a bit strange, having a kid taking watch, but he’d proven to be as skillful as any of you or more.

“Hey, Carl!” You called for him until he looked down at you. “Have you seen Daryl?”

“He came earlier, told me to open the doors cos he was going outside hunting,” he yelled back. “Told him my dad had said he had to rest in here.”

“Bet he liked that…” you murmured. “Okay, thanks!”

You did another scoop around the prison, even checking through the fence of one of the uncleared areas, but Daryl wasn’t anywhere. The doors hadn’t been opened, but you wondered if he had sneaked out anyway. There was an opening in one of the back fences that you all had closed with some wire, but he might have gone out through there.

You rushed to the place, but if Daryl had left, he’d carefully placed the wire back in place. Still, you decided to check, and so you removed the wire, opened the fence and squeezed yourself to the other side, closing it again so no walker could get in. You wished you could track like Daryl, but you couldn’t. Still, you walked into the woods and looked around for any sign of him.

For a while, you didn’t find any trace of Daryl, and then your heart leaped to your mouth when you saw the body of a walker dead on the ground. Had Daryl done that? Were walkers following him? Was he in danger, out there and sick with a fever? You called his name quietly, afraid of bringing more walkers to you, but you couldn’t hear any answer.

All the worse scenarios came to your mind, from Daryl finding too many walkers for him and unable to hide from them as his coughs attracted them, to his fever getting worse and making him being reckless, or maybe making him get dizzy and disoriented, unable to find his way back home…

Trying to calm down so you could be efficient, you began walking through the direction you thought Daryl might have followed, praying he was safe.


	2. Chapter 2

You didn’t have to walk for long until you saw another walker dead on the ground, and a few meters ahead you found another two, one of them with a broken bolt in his head. Daryl… Worry closed your stomach but as you looked around you couldn’t see him or anything that told you where had he gone. You kept walking but you didn’t find any more walkers, neither any other trace of Daryl, and so you decided to backtrack, see if you had missed something.

You had walked past the first walker you had found when a noise caught your attention. Looking towards it, you saw a walker stumbling its way to you. You unsheathed your knife, but before you could do anything, you heard a whistle and the walker fell down to the ground, arrow embedded into its forehead.

You turned around and spotted Daryl making his way to you. He looked worse than this morning, worse than even just an hour ago, his skin paler than you had ever seen him, and even from distance you could notice his laborious breath and the layer of sweat that covered him.

“The hell you doing out here alone!” You couldn’t help but snap, scared and worried as you were.

“Hunting.” Without looking at you, Daryl went to yank his arrow back.

“You’re sick! You’re sick and you have gotten worse!” You stepped in front of him so he’d look at you but he didn’t. “You can’t just go out all by yourself! Putting down walkers and what not!”

“I always hunt by myself,” he grumbled, annoyed. “Those walkers ain’t nothing.”

“But you are sick!” You repeated, exasperated. “You’re not feeling well, anything could have gone wrong, anything could have happened, you have a fever…” You felt tears in your eyes just thinking about it. Daryl was a hothead, sure, stubborn, and not one for resting, but still, he was being irresponsible and it scared you.

“Told you I’m fine!” Daryl snapped, though when he looked at you he seemed to realize how scared you were, and his voice softened. “Hey, Y/N…I’m sorry I made you worry…” he apologized, taking you aback. “But I’m okay.”

“You’re not. You’re ill, and you have a fever, and those things are dangerous now, and you wouldn’t let us help, and you go out alone, and you wouldn’t listen!” You half snapped, half whimpered.

Daryl looked at you as if he didn’t know what to say. “Let’s go back, okay?” He offered, eyeing you carefully.

You nodded and began walking, upset. “I’m not even going to tell you to take the medicine, and rest, because what for, you won’t listen…” Daryl didn’t say anything, and you both walked back to the prison in silence.

Once you were sure Daryl was safe inside and wasn’t planning on going out again, at least for that day, you went to your cell. You needed time to calm down. You thought that maybe you had overreacted, but you couldn’t help how worried you had been knowing that Daryl was alone and outside while he was ill with fever, how scared you were when you saw those walkers…

After a while, Daryl came to the cell too, hair wet after having a shower that did nothing to lower the heat you still could feel radiating from him when he sat down next to you on the bed. For a while, he didn’t say anything and neither did you, until he finally spoke.

“I really need to teach you how to track, you were doing a real shitty job today. Going in the wrong direction and all.”

“It’s not funny!” You snapped, shifting to lie down on the bed with your back to him, upset all over again.

“I’m not saying it is…” Daryl grumbled, letting out a sigh, dropping onto the bed too. “Told you I’m fine, Y/N.”

“No, you aren’t…” You looked at him over your shoulder. “But I’ve given up on trying to make you rest, take the medicines, or anything to help you. Just…just don’t go out alone again or anything like that while you’re like this…”

“Okay…” Daryl murmured, and you didn’t think you could ask anything else from him, you didn’t know if you could even believe his word anymore.

Daryl woke you up twice that night. First when a coughing fit shook him, despite his efforts to pretend nothing was wrong while he kept saying he was perfectly fine. The second time, you woke up when you heard him mumbling and whimpering in his sleep. He still felt warmer than usual, warmer than he should, and you wondered if he was in pain or just having a bad dream.

He kept whimpering and mumbling and you reached to stroke his hair as you tried to shush him and calm him down. He flinched away from your touch but at the same time snuggled closer, and so you held him until he calmed down.

“Are you hurting?” You asked when he woke up.

“No,” he rasped, as you knew he would.

“You still have a fever,” you held your hand to his forehead. “It might have gotten worse.” You were sure Daryl was going to say something, but he just nuzzled into your touch, which worried you more. “I’m going to wake Hershel, tell him to give you something.”

“No,” Daryl wrapped an arm around you when you went to get up.

“Daryl, it’s for your own good…” You tried to move again but he held you tighter.

“No.” His hand fisted on your shirt and he pulled at you to lie down again. “Please.”

He rested his head on your chest, his arm around your middle as if trying to prevent you from leaving, and you didn’t have the heart to move away when he asked like that, maybe you should, but you couldn’t. Instead, you wrapped your arm around him and began to stroke his hair. You could make him take the medicine in the morning.

*

Daryl didn’t take the medicine in the morning, didn’t let Hershel check him, even though it was painfully clear he wasn’t feeling well, his voice as hoarse as you had ever heard it, his eyes glazed, and his skin pale and sweaty. Still, instead of resting, he joined the group who was going to clear another cellblock. Nothing anybody said made him change his mind, and you were afraid that if they didn’t let him help, then he’d go alone by himself again. With an exasperated sigh, you took your gun and your knife, and followed everyone with Daryl by your side.

Once the main area of the cellblock was cleared, all of you paired up to inspect the corridors, see what you could find and put down any walker that might be stranded there. You paired up with Daryl, peering worriedly at him. You could hear his laborious breathe, the way in which his hands shook when he trained his crossbow in front of him. He’d been slower than his usual self when putting down the walkers in the main area, but you hadn’t said anything in front of everyone, afraid of Daryl snapping. You reached for his arm now.

“Daryl…you’re not feeling well, don’t say you are. Let’s go back.”

Daryl moved his arm away from your hand, stubborn. “No. Let’s clear this place.”

“Fine…” You sighed, rolling your eyes.

At least there didn’t seem to be many walkers in the place, if you were lucky you could just sweep through the area and leave without any problem. For a while, you just found dead bodies on the ground and empty shelves. It was disappointing, but it was better than a herd of walkers.

At some point, though, you hear the growl of some walkers, and as you approached the area you found a group of them. It was small enough, though, just three of them munching on something.

“I got it,” you said, unsheathing your knife, though Daryl was already loosening the bolt, putting down one of them.

You put down the other two before he reloaded his crossbow, once again slower than usual, and when you turned to look at him, you noticed Daryl’s hands trembling as he put the string into place, and the way in which he seemed kind of dizzy when he looked up from it.

“Why don’t we go back already?” You suggested again.

“No, let’s see if we can find something here…” he rasped, gesturing around at the big room weakly. “Go through that area and I’ll check these cabinets.”

“Alright…”

You went to do your task, trying to do it as quick but efficient as possible so you could leave soon. You were still at it when you heard a clank that startled you, and when you turned around you saw Daryl had dropped his crossbow. He was looking down, head hanging low, not doing any movement to retrieve his crossbow, not that you had ever seen him letting it fall down before.

“Daryl…”

“Maybe…” he muttered, voice so low that you could barely hear it. “Maybe I ain’t feeling that well…”

Hearing him say that, the way in which his voice sounded, the way he looked, you felt fear paralyzing you for a couple of seconds, before you rushed to him.

“Okay…okay…” You tried to calm down, feeling as if your heart might burst out of your chest at how fast it was beating. “Come on, we’re going back to our cellblock, alright?”

Daryl nodded his head once, so weakly that you could have missed it, but he didn’t move. When you bent down and picked his crossbow he reached out a shaky hand as if to take it from you, but he didn’t seem that coordinated and you strapped the bow to your back, deciding to carry it yourself.

“Come on…” You took Daryl’s hand, which was so hot it felt like burning. You began walking, Daryl stumbling next to you, looking worse than you’d ever seen him. It seemed as if each step took him more and more effort, his eyes more and more unfocused, and you tried to control your fear as you wrapped one of his arms around you.

“I’m fine…” He murmured, but he let you support part of his weight, as if he couldn’t do anything to stop it.

You tried walking you both to the first corridor and then to your cellblock, but Daryl’s weight felt heavier and heavier as he leaned more on you, and you could see him fighting to stay conscious, until he couldn’t stop it anymore, his head hanging loose as he passed out and you stumbled under his weight.

“Damnit…” You tried to stop Daryl from falling down, dropping onto your knees so you could lower him down, holding him to you as you tried to think what to do.

“Sorry…” Daryl whispered so weakly, seeming to be barely conscious, as he tried to move but couldn’t, falling into your arms again. “I’m good…”

He wasn’t, that much was obvious, and it didn’t look like he was going to get better, if only worse. He was fainting again and you tried not to panic. You shifted him so he could rest against the wall. You needed to go looking for help, but you hated the idea of leaving him alone and defenseless.

You knew there weren’t walkers behind, but you weren’t so sure about what you might find ahead, most of the corridors had seemed clear, but it wouldn’t be the first time that a group of walkers seemed to come out of nowhere in that maze of a prison. Still, you needed to do something, and so you walked forwards, giving Daryl worried glances, until you reached the hall in which you had gotten separated from the others.

They hadn’t come back yet and you didn’t know what to do. You didn’t dare to venture much further while leaving Daryl alone and unconscious behind, but neither could you carry him alone. Making noise was dangerous, you knew it, but you didn’t know what else to do, and you hoped all the corridors were clear by now.

“There’s somebody close? Rick? I need help! Please!” You called for the others, as loud as you dared.

It seemed nobody heard you, but then you heard an unmistakable growl and you cursed under your breath as you saw a couple of walkers stumbling out of a dark corridor. They hadn’t been there before so they must have wandered from someplace else, and you hoped there weren’t more than those.

You still had Daryl’s crossbow and you took it, reloading it as Daryl had taught you and aiming for one of the walkers, putting it down silently. You had just reloaded again and aimed for the other walker when you saw a group approaching. Shit…

“Help!” You yelled, not caring about being loud now, you were just worried about the monsters getting to Daryl. “Rick! Anybody! Help!”

You loosened the arrow to put down another and began to backtrack to the corridor where you had left Daryl, the walkers slowly by surely moving to you.

You stopped midway, closer enough to Daryl to see him but far enough to hopefully put down the walkers before they could get too close. You looked back at Daryl, still passed out against the wall, and charged against the walkers that were getting closer, putting them down by knife.

“Y/N?” You looked back at Daryl’s weak voice, distracting you almost enough to let a walker grab you, but you hold it back and stabbed your knife into its head. “Y/N?” He called weakly again, his glazed eyes trying to focus on you. He went to grab his knife, but it dropped onto the floor, and then he tried to get up, stumbling against the wall again. “Y/N…”

You didn’t have time to tell him to stop trying to get up before you had to charge against more walkers, but as more approached you knew in the back of your mind that they were too many for you, but you refused to acknowledge it. You weren’t going to let them get to Daryl, no matter what. Before you could think that everything was lost, thought, Rick, Carol, Glenn and Maggie showed up, charging against the walkers too, and you all put all the monsters down.

“What happened?!”

“It’s Daryl…I think he’s very ill, he’s burning and he passed out! We have to get him to the cell.”

Rick wrapped one of Daryl’s arms around him and Glenn the other, dragging him to the cellblock, while he slipped in and out of consciousness, murmuring unintelligible things, though he never seemed to be really conscious. They dropped him onto the bed, you sitting down next to him, and Hershel rushed into the cell to check him.

Daryl seemed unconscious, but then he flinched away from Hershel roughly. “Don’t touch me!”

“Hey, hey, shhh…” You pressed a hand to Daryl’s chest to hold him down, your other hand soothingly stroking his hair, while he kept murmuring and squirming, trying to open his eyes and failing. “Shhh, it’s okay…” He was weak enough for Hershel to be able to check him, and the worried look in the vet’s face just scared you even more. “What?”

“His fever…I can’t know exactly how high is it, but too high. We need to lower it, or else…”

“Or else what?”

Hershel didn’t say anything, just reached out to squeeze your arm reassuringly, and then he began explaining to you what needed to be done in order to help Daryl. You tried to focus on what Hershel was telling you, but you couldn’t help your mind from wander, and you felt like you couldn’t breathe…could Daryl…could he die from this? From a fever? Just like that…it didn’t seem real. It couldn’t be. Not like that, not after everything you all had gone through, not after everything he had survived.

It just couldn’t be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And...we're diving into deliriums...
> 
> If you liked this please drop me a comment with your thoughts, and also kudos are really apreciated! Excuse my English, is not my first language.


	3. Chapter 3

Hours passed with Daryl falling in and out of consciousness without you leaving his side. When he was unconscious, he muttered nonsense and whimpered, making your heart ache, and when he was awake, his eyes were still glazed and he didn’t seem to know where he was, though he seemed to recognize you when he looked at you, calming down a bit and shifting to curl up with his head on your lap. Whenever someone else came close to check on him, though, or Hershel went to give him the medicine, Daryl’d struggle and flinch away from them, and nothing you did could calm him until they left him alone.

It hurt you to see him squirming and whimpering in his delirium, mumbling nonsense, but all you could do was try to calm him down, holding him to you and stroking his hair as he laid on your lap.

You were shushing him now, fingers combing through his hair, as you heard him whimpering again. “Ain’t true…” he was mumbling, brow furrowing. “Ain’t that. No.”

“It’s okay, darling,” you whispered, trying to calm him down.

“No,” he struggled again. “I didn’t…” he opened his eyes, looking around and then at you, though he still seemed not to be really there. “Ain’t true…”

“What’s wrong?”

“Merle…says I left him…” Daryl’s hazy eyes looked around the cell as if looking for his brother. “Didn’t.”

“Of course you didn’t, love.” You caressed his face softly, trying to calm him down. “You went looking for him, did all you could.”

Daryl blinked at you, seeming dazed, and you weren’t sure as to what extent he was really listening to you. His skin was still burning to the touch, no matter the medicine, and he still seemed weak. He looked around again before snuggling to you once more.

“He did, Merle,” he muttered and rambled. “Left me. He knew what he did to me…the bastard of a dad… but left me. Didn’t care…then came back as if nothing…but he left me…left me with him…”

You knew Daryl’s father was a bad man and a worse father, but you didn’t know the whole extent of it, Daryl had never told you and you hadn’t wanted to press him. Hearing him now, it sounded as bad as you had imagined it, if not worse. You didn’t want to feed Daryl’s delirium, though, or to take advantage of it, and so you let him be without asking all the questions that your brain wanted you to ask. Soon he was falling asleep again, though he was still restless, mumbling and whispering in his sleep.

When he began to struggle and whimper so much that you couldn’t stand it without wanting to cry, you tried to wake him up without startling him more. You tried to be gentle, but still, when he woke up he sat up on the bed and looked around, breathing hard and seeming more scared than you had ever seen him, and you reached out for his hand.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay…” You tried to calm him down, your heart clenching when you noticed tears in his eyes. “It’s okay…” He blinked at you, seeming to wake up from his dream. “What’s wrong, darling?”

Daryl didn’t say anything, instead he lied down on the bed again, but this time with his head on the pillow instead of your lap and his back to you. You reached out to caress his arm and he flinched but then relaxed again, though he curled up hiding his face from you. He seemed conscious but not better, his skin still so pale, sweaty and hot, and you were scared the medicine wasn’t working. Once he was asleep again, you left him to go looking for Hershel.

As soon as Hershel tried to check on Daryl, though, Daryl began struggling again, snapping and telling him to leave him alone, and you didn’t know how much of his outburst was delirium and what wasn’t, but he didn’t stop until Hershel left, and then he curled into himself again. According to Hershel, all you could do was still keep Daryl hydrated, keep giving him the medicine, and hope for the best, waiting for the fever to lower before it was too late.

You sat down next to Daryl to look after him when Hershel left, so scared for him that it was hard not to cry, but you tried to stay hopeful and strong for him. Soon he was squirming and whimpering again, mumbling words you couldn’t understand. At some point he sat up, glazed and scared eyes looking at some point in the room as if he could see something there.

“Don’t…” he whined. “No.”

“Darling?” You reached out to stroke his hair softly. “You’re okay. I promise.”

Daryl blinked at you, then back at that spot in the cell, brow furrowing as if confused, before he lied down on the bed again, head in your lap and face snuggled to your belly as if hiding from the world, his forehead hot as fire.

“Don’t leave me…” he mumbled, and you felt like crying again.

“Never,” you assured, though you didn’t know if he was asking you or not, or if he was delirious or not. Soon, he was unconscious again.

Hours passed and when the sun began to go down, Carol came to visit, eyeing Daryl with worry. “He’s not getting better?”

“No…he’s delirious most of the time, he has this horrible dreams…” You shook your head, biting your lip as you tried not to cry. “Hershel…he said we have to lower his fever or else…but he’s not getting better…and I don’t know what to do…” You whimpered and Carol reached out to squeeze your shoulder.

“Hey, he’s strong, you know how strong he is, right?” You nodded but couldn’t help another whimper. “He’s gonna pull through this, he’s going to get better really soon.” When she brushed her knuckles over Daryl’s hot forehead, though, you could see how she frowned in worry, before she eyed you again. “Sweetheart, why don’t you go and eat something? You haven’t had anything since breakfast.”

“No, no, I don’t want to leave him…” You didn’t want him having one of his nightmares and deliriums alone and scared.

“Okay, I’ll fix you something then, you have to eat, alright?”

When Carol came back with a sandwich, though, you could barely eat it, worried sick as you were, but you forced yourself to munch and swallow, knowing that you needed to be strong for Daryl now.

“Why don’t you try and sleep?” Carol suggested and you shook your head. “Just rest a bit, I’d look after him.”

You knew Carol would do it, that she cared deeply for Daryl and she would take good care of him, but you couldn’t get yourself to move away from him. “He doesn’t like it when someone else look after him…I’m good…”

“Okay…” Carol gave you a kind smile. “Just, maybe try and sleep for a bit, I’m sure you’ll wake up if he needs you.”

You nodded though you didn’t think you could get yourself to sleep. Carol squeezed your shoulder and with a last worried glance at Daryl, she left the cell. You actually ended up dozing off for a bit, but you woke up when Daryl began moving and mumbling again.

“No,” he was whimpering, seeming in distress. “No. Please. Don’t let him.” You hated seeing him like that, and you tried to shush him and calm him down. “Don’t. Don’t let him.”

“Daryl, it’s okay…” Gently, you shook him awake. “Just a bad dream. It’s okay.” He opened his eyes but he didn’t seem to be awake, looking around and seeming confused. When his gaze landed on you, he seemed to calm down, though you weren’t sure if he recognized you or not. “It’s okay…” You stroke his hair and Daryl blinked his bleary eyes at you before shifting closer and snuggling to you, head on your belly.

“She’s gone…” He muttered, holding to you.

“Who, darling?” You still weren’t sure about making him speak about his deliriums and dreams, but you couldn’t just leave him like that.

“Mom. She burnt.” You weren’t sure if what he was saying was true or not, you didn’t really understand much of his babbles, but hurt pierced through your heart anyway. “She left me and then Merle left me too. I’m alone and he comes for me.” You wondered if he was talking about his father now, and you wrapped an arm protectively around him. “I can’t stop it.”

“I got you, darling,” you whispered to him. “None’s coming to hurt you, none’s never gonna hurt you, I promise. I got you. You’re not alone.”

On the morning, Hershel came to check on Daryl again, and as soon as he woke up and realized it, he began to struggle again, trying to pull away from Hershel while you tried to calm him down. Hershel seemed worried, but he tried to give you hope, telling you he might get better that day, the medicine should start to kick…you had to hope so.

After Hershel, Carol came. She sat down next to you both and looked at Daryl as he tried to keep his eyes open, whether he was conscious or not, until they finally closed. Carol held his hand to Daryl’s forehead and then she looked at you.

“I know you’re worried and you want to be with him, but I think you should leave for a bit,” she suggested and you began shaking your head but before you could say anything she spoke again. “Just fifteen minutes. Grab some breakfast, go out and get some fresh air, then come back. I’ll stay with him. You need it.”

You chewed on your lower lip, unsure. You didn’t want to leave, but you were feeling tired of being on the bed, and maybe getting a bit of air could make you some good, and then you’d be back with more energy for him.

“Okay…” You reached out to brush Daryl’s hair away from his face, bending to press a kiss to his forehead before moving away and getting up. “I’ll be back in ten.”

“Take your time.” Carol nodded, giving you a kind smile.

You grabbed a cereal bar from the storeroom and then you made your way outside. You took a deep breath of fresh air and stretched your muscles. You tried taking in deep, calming breaths, trying to think positive as Carol and Hershel had told you. Everything’d be alright…everything’d be alright…

“Y/N?!” You had been out there for barely more than five minutes when Carol called for you urgently from the door, and you forgot all positive thinking, worry taking hold of you again. “Y/N, he woke up…well, not really, he’s delirious and he thought his brother was in there and then walkers… I couldn’t calm him down, he didn’t want me close…” That was what you rushed to Carol. She seemed in distress and so you took a second to squeeze her arm before rushing back to your cell.

As you approached, you noticed the door of the cell wide open. “I left that closed…” Carol murmured and dread filled you. You run into the cell only to find the bed empty and Daryl gone. You started to feel like it was hard to breathe, and Carol reached for you to try and calm you. “Y/N, Y/N, come on, this is a prison, he can’t be far. We’ll find him…”

You could only see Daryl passed out somewhere, but you nodded, trying to get a grip on yourself again. Carol went looking for him inside the cellblock and you went outside, back to the yard, and made your way to the watchtower.

“Glenn!” You yelled until he got out and looked at you from up there. “Have you seen Daryl out here?!”

“No, but I’ve been scanning the treeline out there!”

“Okay…just…yell something if you spot him!”

You kept looking for him until you heard the sound of one of the fences being rattled but it sounded different than when walkers did it…maybe Daryl was there, maybe they were seeing him and pushing the fence to try and get to him. You rushed to the sound but you stopped, frozen in place, your heart jumping to your throat when you saw Daryl trying to open the fence that separated him from the group of walkers.

“Daryl!” You ran to him, tugging him away from the door that he’d managed to open, but he struggled out of your grasp. You pushed back the walkers that were almost walking out of the door and then tugged at Daryl again to push him away when once again he tried to go for the walkers. Grabbing your knife, you put down a couple of the walkers that were getting out of the door and reaching out for both of you, and then you gave another hard push to the ones too close before managing to shut the door close, feeling so scared and overwhelmed that you could cry.

Daryl was stumbling to the fence again, holding his knife with a shaky hand, his other one reaching out for the door again, but you stopped in front of him, planting your hands on his chest and walking him backward. “What the hell are you doing?!” You couldn’t help but yell at him at that moment.

Daryl looked from the walkers to you, as if seeing you for the first time, his eyes clouded, and then back at the walkers. “They…they’re gonna kill him and…and kill them…the others…I…” He babbled, seeming confused.

“They’ll do it if you open the door, and they’ll kill you first!” You snapped, feeling tears in your eyes, and you took a deep breath, trying to calm down and not yell or snap and Daryl when he was so ill.

“But…but…they were…I…just…” He was frowning at the walkers as if suddenly something wasn’t making sense to him.

“They can’t go to our cellblock and yard, they’re locked in there,” you tried to explain calmly, you guessed all this might have something to do with one of Daryl’s delirious dreams. “It’s okay. They’re trapped. Everyone’s safe.”

“But…” Daryl still seemed confused, looking from the walkers to you.

You spotted Glenn running to you both, followed by Carol, but you reached out your hand to indicate them to stop, you didn’t want Daryl freaking out again.

“We’re safe. Walkers can’t get out the fence. Okay?” You keep trying to calm Daryl down. He seemed lost but then he nodded, taking the hand that you offered. You walked him back to the cellblock while he kept looking back at the walkers behind the fence, still seeming a bit confused, and then he blinked at Carol and Glenn as you walked past them, his frown just deepening.

Once inside your cell, you made him lie down on the unmade bed and you sat down next to him as he curled up with the sheets and pillow. “You thought they were getting in here, darling?” You guessed he’d seen something like that in his sleep, scaring him. “That’s not going to happen, promise.” You stroked his hair and Daryl blinked his glazed eyes at you in silence before they closed and he fell back into an uneasy sleep. His forehead was still hot and you went to take the medicine Hershel had given you, and also some more water and a bowl of stew, but you made sure to lock the cell behind you now.

Carol rushed to you as soon as she saw you out of the cell. “Y/N, I’m so sorry, I didn’t think…I didn’t think he’d leave, I didn’t think he’d get up like that, he was struggling and mumbling things, but I didn’t think…I’m so sorry…”

“I know, I know…I didn’t think it either. It’s okay.”

“Yeah…yeah, but he almost…” Carol shook her head, her eyes watering, and you reached out to take her hand. “He’s not getting better…I thought…I…”

“Hey, hey come on now…” You gave her a weak smile, trying not to cry yourself. “You told me to have hope and just wait, that he was going to get better, yeah?” Carol nodded, swallowing hard. You needed her to keep being strong so you could look at her and feel hopeful, if she wasn’t, then you didn’t know if you could keep being positive.

“Yeah…yeah, you’re right.” A tear fell down her cheek, but she smiled. “Now come on, go and try to nurse that stubborn man back to health.” You couldn’t help your sad chuckle at that, nodding and turning back to your cell.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We got some delirious Daryl :( What did you thought? If you liked this, please drop me a comment and let me know your thoughts. Excuse my English, is not my first language.


	4. Chapter 4

You woke up Daryl gently and he took the medicine you gave him without complaining. He was mumbling nonsense, but he didn’t seem in distress, and he also drank some sips of water. He refused to eat, though, and you didn’t press him, not wanting to upset him. He snuggled back to you and soon he was falling asleep, whimpering and mumbling from time to time, though he seemed a bit more calmed down than the other times.

Hours passed, night fell, and you felt exhaustion taking over you. You weren’t sure about drifting off to sleep, but you guessed that if Daryl felt worse, you’d wake up when you felt him moving or coughing. Still, you tried to stay awake for as long as possible, until you couldn’t keep your eyes open anymore.

You didn’t wake up until several hours had passed. Everything was dark, the candle you had lit having blown off by now, but the sun would come up in not long. You woke up as soon as you felt Daryl shifting, as if you had trained yourself to do so, though he wasn’t whimpering or murmuring anything.

“Y/N?” He called for you softly.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m here,” you caressed his arm. “I’m with you.” You felt Daryl placing his hand over yours and you laced your fingers before reaching out take the lantern you kept on the nightstand table and turn it on.

The light illuminated the room dimly, and you looked at Daryl. He was sitting up, looking around and still seeming confused and a bit lost, but you thought his eyes didn’t look that glassy and clouded now. He looked at you, and he seemed to actually see you. You wondered if he was finally really awake, instead of trapped in one of his deliriums.

“How are you feeling?”

“Like shit…” Daryl flopped down onto the bed again. He did sound awake, even though tired and weak. You held your hand to his forehead, and though it was still too warm, it wasn’t as hot as once it has been.

“I think you might be better…” You hoped so.

Daryl hummed, throwing an arm over his eyes. “Head feels like someone’s punching me from the inside…” he complained. “And there are burning nails in my throat or some shit…”

“So you admit you’re sick now?” Seeing him speaking, seeming awake not matter weak and still sick, gave you the strength to joke a bit. Daryl removed his arm from his face to look at you and he scoffed, which made him wince, but he lifted your hand to kiss your knuckles, making you smile.

“Take this, okay? It’s about time again.” You let go of his arm to take the medicine and Daryl sat up again to do as instructed. “Do you want some water?” You passed him the bottle. “Or I could make you something hot to drink, it might shoot your throat…” You had been making him drink some handmade tea that Hershel had prepared, whenever Daryl allowed you to do so, but you didn’t have anything in the cell now.

“Water’s good…”

Daryl took a couple of sips, wincing as he swallowed. He passed you the bottle back and then lied down against the pillows. You lied down next to him on your side, looking over him, one of your hands caressing his hair as he hummed contently. For a little while, none of you spoke, and then he called for you again.

“Y/N?”

“Yeah?”

“I…when I was out of myself…I can’t remember…not really…but…I think I know…but, then I don’t know…” He was frowning, thinking hard and at loss of words. “I…did I say…things?”

“You murmured things in your sleep, you had bad dreams.” You omitted the part about him getting up and wandering towards walkers, he didn’t need to know.

“What things?”

“It doesn’t matter.” You were afraid that if you brought it up, Daryl might be upset. He still needed to rest. “Try and sleep for a little bit longer, love, you need to regain your strength.” If Daryl hadn’t wanted to fall back asleep, his body did want him to, and soon he was dozing off again.

Next time Daryl stirred awake, the sun was already up in the sky and people had begun to wake up for their morning activities. Daryl looked at you, and even though he still radiated warmth, his face was pale and he seemed weak, still seeming rather ill, he seemed to be conscious. You brushed your fingers over his forehead, hot but not burning as once it had been, and then caressed his cheek.

“Feeling better?”

Daryl hummed, closing his eyes and leaning into your touch. “Everything hurts…don’t feel really awake…” He complained, though just the fact of hearing him speak like that gave you hope and made you smile. If only he knew how bad and lost in his deliriums he had been, unable to really understand your words most of the time, to realize that you were there or where he was.

“I’m going to bring Hershel to check you.” You leaned down to kiss Daryl’s cheek and Daryl reached to hold your arm and held you there.

“Don’t…”

“Come on, darling, he’s the doctor, he has to see you, it’ll be okay,” you told him quietly. “And I’ll bring you something to eat with the medicines, and I’d really like it if you eat it.” He hadn’t had but tea and water since he passed out that first time.

“Okay…” Daryl gave in, letting go of you, and you kissed him again before getting up and going looking for Hershel.

Daryl seemed awkward while Hershel checked him, but seeing the vet soft smile made you more hopeful. “Fever’s going down,” he announced, and you could cry of how relieved you were. “If it keeps going like that, you’ll be out of danger…you’re still going to feel sick for a little while longer, but I hope the fever will be gone by tomorrow.”

Daryl just nodded in silence, but you grinned at him. “Thanks.” Hershel gave you a smile and left Daryl and you alone. You sat down next to Daryl and passed him a warm mug of freshly made Hershel’s tea. “Drink this while I make you something to eat.”

“Okay…”

A few minutes later you went back to the cell with a bowl of stew. Carol was there, talking to Daryl, who seemed a bit grumpy but who wasn’t freaking out as he’d done before when people checked on him.

“Your pretty nurse is back,” Carol said, making you snort, but you smiled, seeing her looking hopeful and relieved. “Don’t be an ass and do what she says, or I’ll come to be your nurse and I won’t be as nice if you behave like a stubborn kid.”

“Whatever,” Daryl grumbled, but you didn’t miss his small smirk as he watched her walking out.

You sat down next to him and passed him the bowl of stew. “Eat.”

“I have to go hunting,” Daryl said while he ate. “This is caned.”

“You’re not going anywhere until Hershel says you are good enough.” And with how much he’d scared you, you didn’t plan on letting him go alone anyway.

Daryl just hummed but didn’t say anything else, finishing the stew, and then he took the medicines you told him without any fuss, seeming totally conscious. Once he was ready to go back to rest, no matter he complained a bit about it, you settled next to him on the bed, leaning back against the headboard. Daryl lied down, curling up to and resting his head on your lap.

You stroke his hair in silence, and although you could feel Daryl fighting it, eventually he fell asleep. After a while, though, he began squirming and mumbling. You were scared he was getting worse, back to his deliriums, and so you shook him awake again not as gently as you’d have wanted.

“What…” Daryl frowned, looking around confused, which made nothing to ease your fears of him being trapped in his delirium again. “Y/N?” His eyes focused on you, sleepy and tired but not clouded and hazy. “Something’s wrong?”

“No just…you were having a bad dream…” You tried to calm down, Daryl seemed pretty conscious, so maybe it had just been a regular nightmare. He used to have those before he went sick too.

“Yeah…” Daryl settled on your lap again, nuzzling his face into your belly as if to hide, and you played with his hair. He was silent for a while and when he spoke again, he didn’t look up from your belly. “I couldn’t wake up from the nightmares, these days...I don’t remember, don’t think so, just...glimpses…but…I don’t know, it felt…it’s confusing…”

“You were delirious…it seemed pretty scary.”

Daryl hummed. “Tell me what I said.”

You bit your lip, not sure as to what extent it’d do Daryl any good to know the things he’d said and that had haunted him in his delirium. “You talked about your family. Merle, you miss him. Even if he was an ass. I think…I think you feel guilty about what happened in Atlanta. You shouldn’t. You know you did all you could, yeah?”

Daryl only shrugged and you wondered how he felt. “My old man…did I say something?” You bit your lip, wondering if Daryl might get upset knowing his fever had made him reveal something he hadn’t wanted to talk about before. “Y/N?” he pressed.

“Yeah…and about your mother…”

“Is that so?” You felt Daryl tense, his voice sounding harsh all of a sudden, and you hoped he wouldn’t freak out. “Did I say she wouldn’t do nothing when my dad came for us, that she just smoked and drank herself out, until one day she passed out and burned herself and half the room?” Daryl snapped and your heart clenched, though you weren’t sure of how to comfort him without making him angry at that moment.

“Daryl…”

“That my father drank even more than her? Beat us until I thought he’d kill me? Did whatever he wanted to me when everyone left me?” Daryl was sitting up and you were afraid he was going to storm away when he was still sick. You held his wrist but he yanked his arm away. “That I did nothing to stop him? That I was so terrified of him I felt like pissing my pants whenever I heard him coming back home? That I couldn’t fight back, couldn’t beat him, that I was weak?”

Your heart was breaking and you didn’t know what to say. Daryl was breathing hard, cheeks blushed in anger and shame. His eyes were full of rage, but they were watering too. You reached out to caress his cheek but he pulled away again. He didn’t try to get up, though, instead he flopped down at the other side of the bed, his back to you.

“Darling…” You whispered, reaching out to caress his arm, and Daryl flinched. You didn’t know what to do. It didn’t seem like he wanted to talk or anything, and maybe he needed time alone, but you couldn’t get yourself to leave him like that. You lied down next to him, though you gave him space, and gently you began to stroke the hair at the back of his neck as he hid his face from you.

When you felt him relaxing, you dared to shift closer and wrap a careful arm around him when he didn’t flinch.

“You were a kid. You know it wasn’t your fault, right?” You said quietly, and Daryl didn’t say anything. “You weren’t weak. Just a kid. I’m sorry you had no one back there, you didn’t deserve anything of that. But it wasn’t your fault and there’s nothing to be ashamed of.” Daryl was still silent, and you decided not to press it any further, just hoping he knew you were there for him.

“Did I…did the others hear?” He asked after a while.

“I don’t think so…” He’d freaked out whenever they approached, but you thought they hadn’t made much sense of his babbles.

“I…it’s just…I just…” Daryl seemed to struggle as he looked for words, and you kissed his shoulder softly. “I don’t…don’t want them thinking I’m weak…” he finally whispered.

“Darling, they wouldn’t think that, no matter what, cos you weren’t, and you aren’t,” you tried to reassure him. “You’re a survivor, a true one, and you are the bravest person I’ve ever met…and you’re strong, resourceful, smart...” you heard Daryl scoffing, but you kept going. “And you know what’s better and kind of incredible? That you are selfless and kind. You have the best heart, you’re the best man I’ve known, despite everything that was done to you. That’s pretty awesome…you’re pretty awesome, Daryl Dixon. I’m proud of you. And I love you.”

Daryl wasn’t saying anything and you hoped you hadn’t pushed it too much, overdone it a bit, but you had just poured your heart into your words. He didn’t snap, though, didn’t freak out. Instead, he slowly shifted closer to you, pressing his back against your chest, and you tightened your arm around him, holding him tight, and you kissed his shoulder again. He still was silent, but then you heard him whisper, “love you too,” ever so quietly. You didn’t know to what extent he believed your words, but you hoped you were bringing him a little bit of comfort, if only by holding him.

You didn’t realize you had fallen asleep until you woke up. Your arm was still around Daryl but he’d shifted onto his back and you were lying with your head on his chest while his fingers caressed your hair. You blinked your eyes open and pulled away slightly to look at him. He still looked too pale, but not that ill and his skin wasn’t covered in sweat. He was getting better and you couldn’t help your smile.

“Hey…sorry, didn’t mean to fall asleep on you…” You were supposed to look over him.

Daryl gave you a soft, half-smile, the hand that was caressing your hair moving now to brush over your cheek softly. “You haven’t rested much, have you?” You didn’t say anything, just turned your head to kiss his palm and Daryl tugged at you until you were lying over him again as he let out a content hum. After a while of lying there together your stomach growled, embarrassing you, and Daryl chuckled. “Guess you haven’t been eating much either.”

You shrugged, sitting up. “What if I go and bring us something to eat? I think it’s past lunch.”

“Okay.”

You sent Hershel to check on Daryl and then you went to the kitchen area to see what you could find. You decided to take a can of baked beans for both Daryl and you, you got a bowl ready and made your way back to the cell. You found Rick there, talking to Daryl, glad to see he was doing better.

He left you two alone and you sat down next to Daryl, passing him a spoon and placing the bowl of beans between you two. “I hate this stuff so much,” you grumbled between bites, making Daryl snort. “But protein or whatever.”

“Hershel said fever’s almost gone,” Daryl informed you. “I should be fine.” You beamed at him, kissing his cheek. That was the best news you could have.

After lunch, you gave Daryl his medicine and tried to make him rest. He shifted restlessly on the bed until he huffed and sat up. “I’m sick of being here, I wanna go out.”

“I’m not sure…” You didn’t want him getting grumpy and you knew he wasn’t the best patient when he wasn’t feeling too ill. You could already see him getting all antsy, and so you let out a sigh and nodded. “Come on.”

You both walked out of the cell to the main area, heading outside. Everyone greeted Daryl as they saw him, glad to see him better, out and about. You could see him getting a bit awkward but he nodded back to them. Once outside, you walked through the yard hand in hand. Daryl was enjoying the outside, there was no doubt, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, even though you knew he’d rather be outside the fences and into the woods.

You wandered for a bit until Daryl walked you both to one of the picnic tables. He sat on top of it while you stood between his legs, one hand on his shoulder and the other caressing his cheek. “Feeling better?” He nodded, leaning into your touch. You held your palm to his forehead, it was warm but considerably less than before, almost back to normal. Smiling, you closed your eyes and kissed his lips.

Daryl kissed you back, tugging at you to fall onto his lap when your lips parted and you let him, settling on his lap with a giggle. “The last thing I remember clearly, we were there clearing the cellblock.” He pointed at the building before wrapping his arm around you to hold you close.

“We were, until you passed out…shit, you scared me…” Not as much as he’d scared you when his delirium made him try to go kill walkers alone, not far from there, but scared enough…if Rick and the others hadn’t shown up to help you kill those walkers…

“I’m sorry…” Daryl nuzzled into your hair.

“Not your fault, just…next time, admit that you are sick, take the medicine and rest, instead of pushing yourself until this happens…”

“Okay…” Daryl murmured before hiding his face in the crook of your shoulder. You smiled, finally allowing yourself to relax. He was good, he was getting better, and soon he’d be back to normal with his strength back. He’d probably be a grumpy, cranky patient for a couple of days as he felt better, but you could deal with it if it meant he was safe and out of danger.

“You got me really worried, darling…” You whispered, stroking his hair. “I’m so glad you’re better…I didn’t know what to do…” Without a word, Daryl pressed a soft kiss to the skin of your neck and you smiled wider.

None of you said anything else for a while, until Daryl spoke again, face still almost buried in your neck. “Thanks,” he murmured. “For all this. For taking care of me…for being patient…” You felt your heart melt a bit at his words, and you squeezed him a bit tighter to you.

“No need for thanks. We help each other through everything, right? We got each other. Always.” Daryl looked up from your shoulder at that, smiling softly, and he nodded. “Just…don’t get sick again anytime soon, cos I don’t think I can handle it again.” You joked, but you were serious too, you didn’t think you could go through all of it again, seeing Daryl so ill and in such distress, not knowing if he’d get better, fearing that the fever might just take him…you didn’t want to even think about it again.

Daryl snorted, but he smirked as he looked at you. “I ain’t planning on it,” he said, tangling his fingers into your hair to pull you even closer and kiss you lips.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you’ll like this new mini-series, if you have a moment please comment with your thoughts. As always, English is not my mother tonge, so I’m sorry if there are mistakes and typos.


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